Contents

Summary of Key Findings

Briefly describe your most significant findings.

1. Introduction

Injections with nano-compounds that ‘manipulate’ our pears, flames from the drinking water tap due to hydraulic fracturing, a whole new weapon-arsenal based on synthetic biology, are but three examples of influential images of contested technologies. Engaged citizens, experts, politicians, industry and others defend, develop or despise technologies in passionate ways. They frame facts and uncertainties in accordance with their values and beliefs.These visual framing aspects of policy controversies should be better included in analysis of the emergence and dynamics of these controversies. The visualisations create an extra dimension, as (1) they may introduce imaginaries and ‘alternative facts’, (2) they travel with high speed across the internet and on social media, and (3) they transcend administrative and geographical boundaries ((Clancy and Clancy 2016; Grabe et al 2009; Metze in press; Wozniak et al 2016).

In this research project, we aimed to map the framing contests – both in words and in visuals – in an emerging shale gas controversy in three countries / internet regions: Mexico, the United Kingdom, South Africa.

2. Research Questions

The main research question:

What are competing frames and competing visuals in emerging controversy over shale gas in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Mexico?

What actors and coalitions in these three countries are involved in the shale gas controversy?

How do the actors frame shale gas: what issue words do they use?

What are the opposing actors, what are (their) opposing frames?

What visuals and clusters of visuals are present in the three countries?

What are competing/contrasting visualizations?

What are differences and similarities in the visualisations between countries and the actors in those countries identified as pro, against and neutral?

What are differences and similarities in the visualisations between pro-fracturing; contra-fracturing and neutral actors across the thre countries?

3. Methodology

3.1. Research design

We selected three countries in which shale gas reservoirs are relatively high, and contestation is different:

Metze, T. (in press) “Visual framing for policy learning: internet as the eye of the public”, In N.F. Dotti (ed): Knowledge, Policymaking and Learning for European Cities and Regions, Series: New Horizons in regional science, Edwar Elgar.

Wozniak, Antal, Hartmut Wessler & Julia Lück (2016): Who Prevails in the Visual Framing Contest About the United Nations Climate Change Conferences?, Journalism Studies Coverage and framing of climate change adaptation in the media: A review of influential North American newspapers during 1993–2013 James D. Ford, Diana King, Environmental Science and Policy 48 (2015) 137-146